Denture



May 1s, 1937'.

t R. GALLowAY DENTURE Filed June 12, 1956 Lvanzor- Patented May 18, 1937 UNETED STATES PATENT orties Application June 12, 1936,.Serial No.' 84,949 i In Great Britain June 11, 1935 4 Claims.

The object of this invention is to improve lower dentures soV that, in use, they have less or no tendency to move, and can be produced with a better bite than at present and with less labour 5 on the part .of the dentist.

To this end the invention consists in replacing lower back teeth with mouldings in the wax set or material of the denture substantially complementary to the artificial teeth of an upper denture, to the patients natural teeth, or to both, as the case may be. This is achieved by providing the lower denture with cavities which, when the denture is otherwise finished, are filled with a plastic composition such as amalgam or other soft metal (hereinafter included in the term amalgam) adapted to receive impressions of the upper back teeth of the patient, artificial or natural. Afterwards, when set, the denture is nished 01T in the desired fashion.

By way of example, in carrying out the invention, there may be put on a full lower denture six front teeth as usual, i. e. two oentrals, two laterals and two canines. A canine is then added on each side behind these to take the place of thev lst lower bicuspids on each side, making a total of eight lower front teeth. No further back teeth are incorporated. Instead, a slot or well is cut in the denture on each side as far forward as the back of the second added canine on each side, ending posteriorly on each side of the denture. An amalgam or the equivalent then is applied after the denture is nished oi with the eight teeth vulcanized in position and the slot or well in either side has been cut. The amalgam is of course applied to the slot or well which is filled or substantially filled with the'same. The patient is then caused to bite laterally and antero-posteriorly in the soft filling of amalgam to get an absolutely correct bite, after which the amalgam is allowed to set, say for about 24 hours, when polishing or other finishing treatment is effected. The upper denture with the usual artificial teeth (unless the patient is possessed of natural teeth) is of course first necessarily completed before the bite is taken as described.

In most cases, as an alternative to cutting slots or wells in the denture, metal forms-one right and one left-having each a deep Well or cavity may be introduced into the wax set of the denture prior to testing in comparison with the finished upper denture or the patients natural teeth, the metal forms being so embedded in the wax set that they are not visible after the soft amalgam is placed therein.

Partial lower dentures, assuming six natural 01. sia- 2) 2. Y lower front teeth or the two canines to exist, may have but "one canine tooth on each side as statedk hereinbefore.- Withv such a partial denturevit is quite unnecessary to band orclasp the natural canines on each side.

The weight of the plastic composition, or filling in the cavities on each side of the denture, is the main factor in holding the denture in position and this, coupled with the perfectly natural bite which the patient ensures for himself marks a very decided advance in the art.

In addition to the advantages referred to, dentures according to the invention will be found to be less liable to clatter when in use, while in many cases the clatter will be overcome altogether.

The invention obviously is not limited to the example specifically described. For instance, instead of a single additional canine at each side, there may be an additional pair of canine teeth at each side, and this is the example chosen for illustration in the accompanying drawing which will now be referred to and wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective View of a full lower denture according to the invention, the left half of which is represented as finished and the other a half of which is represented in course of production; and

Figs. 2 and 3 are respectively a side elevation and a plan view, on enlarged scale, of a metal well for incorporation in a denture as at the left of Fig. l, these wells being made right and left handed of course.

The said figures are practically self explanatory, the reference numeral l in Fig. 1 representing the recess which is cut in the material ofl the denture in any convenient way and in any convenient shape to receive and secure the plastic (amalgam) filling, which after the bite is taken, as explained,will have an appearance somewhat as indicated at 2.

The well in Figs. 2 and 3 has parts (undesignated) of one side wall out away, or shaped somewhat as shown, so as not to foul teeth in the denture, and being of a thin metal can be bent if necessary to suit requirements.

What I claim is:-

1. The method of producing a denture, which consists in first forming the denture with only the front and forward teeth, thereby leaving the back teeth omitted, and in place of the omitted back teeth providing well cavities in the material of the denture, finishing off the thus initially formed denture with said front and forward teeth vulcanized in place, lling the well cavities with a temporarily plastic but hardening medium to receive the impressions of a completed oppositely related denture or natural teeth, causing the patient to bite upon the uncompleted denture fitted into place while the cavity filling impression medium is still in the plastic state, allowing the impressed medium in the cavities to set, and then finally nishing and polishing the denture.

2. The method of producing a lower denture, which consists in first forming the denture with only the lower front and forward canine teeth, thereby leaving the other back teeth omitted and in place of said omitted back teeth providing well cavities in the material of the denture, finishing off the thus initially formed denture with said lower front and forward canine teeth vulcanized in place, filling the well cavities with a temporarily plastic but hardening medium toreceive the impressions of a completed upper denture or natural teeth, causing the patient to bite upon the uncompleted denture fitted into place While the cavity filling impression medium is still. in the plastic state, allowing the impressed medium in the cavities to set, and then finally finishing and polishing the denture with the set medium in place. Y

having secured therein lower front and forward canine teeth, and said plate in the rear of said front and forward teeth having elongated well cavities retentively holding a temporarily plastic but hardened impression medium that has received impressions from the opposed upper den.- ture or natural teeth of the patient, the said plate with said secured front and forward canine teeth and the impressed hardened impression medium retained in the said well cavities adapted to be finished and polished in the customary manner.

ROBERT GALLOWAY. 

